Nutrition and Exercise as part of your training repertoire?

Someone made an interesting statement in another post that has me scratching my head. I understand the importance of diet and nutrition as well as exercise for overall well being; however, how does this apply to Chess. I am reading the Russians and Bobby Fischer used extensive physical training prior to matches. My question is, has anyone ever gone from eating poorly and sitting on the couch all the time to exercising and eating right, thus producing noticeable results in your rating and game play?

Or is this an endurance issue, as some games can last 4+ hours?

Mike

smoking and chess dont mix

you are more aleart on an empty stumick

your opponent should not make any difference in your playing

brb

Josh Waitzkin made a good point in his book "The Art of Learning," which I recommend for an interesting read. He stated that sometimes he would go out side and do long sprints, full out , even during a game in progress, with his clock running. He said it rejuvenated him, brought his thoughts back to center, and made him sharper. As skull mentioned above, you can't separate the mind from the body. 

Yes, this is an endurance issue in OTB games. You need a clear head after 3,5hrs+ of play and sometimes good nerves too : physical training helps.

Actually, I should know better. It makes perfect sense. If your overweight and eating hoagies and grinders every day.....well...I know it makes me sleepy, lol. But seriously, exercise is excellent for your emotional well being and stress levels. I'm just surprised how integral it is to so many professionals.

I've noticed about a 100 point jump in my Standard on line score when I exercise regularly.  When I stop the exercise, goes back down.   

I wonder if it isn't simply a myth that sounds plausible. Is there any actual proof of exercise helping chess?

Well you look at the top players in the world and they are generally in good physical condition.  If you queried them, I am sure they would tell you that exercise is part of their daily routine. 

I fully agree with Budboomer. If you are not taking properly care of yourself, you can not be a great person. With or without chess

Again, though, maybe it's all just a placebo effect.

Be like Fischer, who trained for the strongest kung fu grip for when he shook his opponent's hand.

If it goes 4 hours, see a doctor.

Really though, I'd imagine exercise should help with spacial relationships and coordination, stress management, endurance, cognition, just to name a few physical attributes relevant to chess performance.  There's probably no direct studies that looked at effects of exercise on chess performance, since there's the problem of defining it.  Perhaps the effect of age on chess strength should shed some light on the matter, where physical conditioning is concerned.

It's not. Being healthy helps you be better at pretty much everything.

After reading this thread, I realize how one's physique enhances one's chessing abilities. I don't know what gets into me, I quickly consume the creatine that I'd hidden safely from the world. The creatine has now entered my veins. I can feel it raging inside of me. I look down and realize my 11 inch biceps have swollen at least half an inch. I become scared of my own strength. Mother knocks on the door to tell me good night, but I tell her not to open the door...i dont want her to see me like this. Moments later I catch myself looking at myself in the mirror...I can barely recognize myself.The worst is yet to come..

I usually walk around the tournament hall and count how many steps it takes. in the one in Vegas it took 211 steps. LOL I also excersice, just for health.

Being healthy is nearly as much work as studying chess